Some Brooklynite Complains About Extension of High Line, Which Will Happen Regardless

The High Line is one of New York’s millennial architectural treasures: a testament not only to a city’s rejuvenation after 9/11 and a working relationship between public and private space (and money), but an eco-friendly green space in one of the world’s most industrial hubbubs.

So with the park’s planned extension with Section Three, which goes northward past West 33rd St., you’d think that everybody would be happy…at least until we can get the subterranean Low Line up and running. But they’re not.
In an article for DNAinfo.com, a Greenpoint resident was grumbling during a recent guided tour through Section three that the currently non-pedestrian friendly area would be best left in au natural:

It would be nice if they kept it in this natural state, maybe just put in a path here but kept it in a state of preserved decay,” said J.R. Lettenberger, 30, who was visiting from Greenpoint. “What they have further down is nice, but they could make this like an urban Appalachian Trail.”

Not going to happen, dude. If the Friends of the High Line opened up the path without making sure that the area was clear and walkway-friendly, who is going to be responsible when a tourist leans too far over one side to snap a photo of the Hudson and falls 30 feet?

It’s a sweet idea, but if you really want an urban Appalachian trail, go set up a Starbucks on the top of Cheaha Mountain.